Not so Different
by Genesic
Summary: It was the first time Dia had ever truly met someone like this, someone who was completely different from her. One-shot.


I don't own any of this stuff. This was written in the theme of "Opposites".... just... kinda badly.

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Despite what some people liked to believe, Dia was not always afraid of strangers. When she was younger, she acted very much like the typical spoiled rich girl. She paid no regard to others, and generally put herself first.

As time passed however, she began to notice what others thought of her. She would hear comments occasionally; things like "Snob" and "Spoiled", and even comments about her faking being sickly. She wasn't sure why, but these things really bothered her. Every glare came to feel like knives piercing her skin, each comment a stunning blow to her head.

Eventually, she began to slowly withdraw, hardly talking to anyone, spending even less time outside of her house. Her demeanor became quiet and withdrawn, a turtle hiding in its shell.

She found herself unable to talk to new people. What if they too grew to dislike her? Not even being noticed was better than being hated! Whenever she met someone new, she would simply avoid talking, even fleeing if all else failed. She didn't need to meet new people, she was fine on her own. Her personality grew cold to those close to her, an armor of ice to protect from the cruelty of others.

The prospect of moving to a new town frightened Dia greatly. A place full of nothing but new faces would be a living hell with her problem. But the idea of the clean air being good for her condition and her parent's recent divorce left her with no other options.

And suddenly it seemed like she was in an entirely new world.

Seeing Gina and Martha was actually a relief for Dia: Martha had originally been somewhat of a nanny to Dia when she was a child, and it also resulted in her meeting her granddaughter. But even though she knew them, she still couldn't bring herself to drop her guard around them, the fear was still too great.

The panic in her heart was already uncontrollable, threatening to burst out. She felt dizzy despite her attempts to remain calm. Even with Gina's help it was hard to keep her cool, every time a person stopped in to see the new sanatorium she would make sure she was out of sight.

She let out a sigh of relief as closing time neared, and allowed herself to relax. She decided to enjoy a bit of light reading, and went to ask Gina where her book was.

And that was the first time she met him.

His eyes locked onto hers the second he noticed she was there. He stared intently at her, curious at her mere presence in the room.

She didn't know what to do, she couldn't speak, her lungs were suddenly unable to function, it was impossible to breath. She stared back into his eyes, afraid of what would happen if she were to blink. She couldn't even register Gina's worried explanation of who she was.

He continued to stare at her as well. For some reason, his eyes refused to part from hers. There was something strange about his stare, like he saw something in her, something strange.

Eventually her fear got the better of her. Her legs suddenly regained feeling, and she acted upon that feeling instantly, as she ran back behind the curtains, waiting for him to leave.

Gina later explained that the man's name was Jack. He was a farmer who had moved here only a short bit before them.

That didn't matter to Dia, she wouldn't ever see him again anyways. But for some reason, she couldn't rid herself of the image of his staring face. Who really cared though? His image would fade soon enough, because she would never see him again.

She was wrong.

Jack came by the next day, this time actually asking for her.

To any bystander, it would have looked like a very strange conversation(as it was). The entire conversation consisted of Jack trying to talk soothingly to what appeared to be a trembling curtain.

She was in shock the entire time, she could hardly get a word out the entire time that he spoke to her. That didn't stop him though, he continued to smile and talk to her like they had been friends for years. The conversation actually lasted for about a half of an hour, before he finally said his farewells.

Despite her shock, she was more surprised to find that she had remembered the entire conversation perfectly. She couldn't even remember the last time she had a normal conversation with another person. Hiding behind a curtain wasn't exactly normal, but it was a huge leap for someone like her. That still didn't matter though: he definitely thought she was a weirdo by now, he wouldn't ever be back.

Once again, she was wrong.

Jack didn't seem deterred at all by her phobia, he actually seemed to try harder because of it. Their conversations remained more or less the same: with her hiding behind something, and he talking animatedly anyways.

She began to see who Jack really was as a person, to see his true self. Jack was a hard worker, a friendly person, and a brave man who always put others before himself. In other words: Jack was her opposite in every way possible.

And to her amazement, Jack seemed to learn much about her too(despite how little she talked). He knew she liked rainy days(the best days to curl up with a book), he knew her favorite foods, and he even seemed to know some things about her that she didn't notice.

After a week of talking, Dia found, to her surprise, that it was fine to talk to Jack face to face. It was a revolutionary feeling, being able to gaze directly at his face without panicking too much. Jack also seemed to be proud of her for making such progress. They continued talking everyday, sometimes for hours. She began to grow fond of him without truly realizing it.

One day she wasn't able to meet with him due to a large harvesting day. She was surprised at just how lonely she felt without him there to talk to. It felt like an entire chunk of her day was suddenly missing, a very unpleasant sensation. It was such an unsettling feeling that she acted on a reckless impulse and went to his house the next morning.

She brought him some blueberries, more of an excuse for herself than for him. By the time she reached his house, she was so nervous that she thrust the berries forward with a heavy blush burning her face. He accepted them with a smile, his eyes saying that he understood why she was here, and he promised to not miss out on their talking sessions anymore.

"Why do you always force yourself to talk with me?" She asked him one day. "Why would such a happy and kind person like you want to be with someone like me? We're total opposites." The question had been eating at her since day one.

"What the heck are you talking about?" He tilted his head to the side, and stared at her curiously. "I think you're the only one here who thinks of yourself in that way. You don't give yourself nearly enough credit." He gave her a warm smile, and held her hand in his own. "I think you're a kind and caring person too, you just care so much that it makes you afraid of others hating you. Trust me, I know you, and that's why I like to talk with you."

She bowed her head in embarrassment, flailed for a second, and uttered a tiny "Thank you." before skittering away quickly

It wasn't until Gina brought it up that Dia realized that Jack had changed her. Her fear of strangers was no longer so immense, she was kinder to others, and she smiled more than she ever used to. She owed all these changes in her life to Jack, but he told her that he had only helped her, that _she_ had been the one making all the real effort.

She began to make new friends in the village, no longer afraid of being hated or disliked. She enjoyed going out to festivals and talking with all the other villagers. She wasn't the absolute nicest person in the village, that just wasn't true to who she really was, but everybody still accepted her.

And eventually she came to realize it, what Jack had known all along.

She wasn't a terrible person like she used to believe. She wasn't perfect, she knew that, but she was still somebody. She had her strengths, and she had her weaknesses, that's what made her real. There was no "perfect" out there, everything had some kind of flaw.

Even Jack had his own flaws. He was too kind sometimes, and let others take advantage of him(thus Dia became a sort of guardian for him). He had thousands of little flaws, just like everyone else. But, as Dia slowly came to realize, she still loved him anyways.

And so, with the help of Jack, her friends, and even herself; Dia finally blossomed into her true self. She cast off her former shell, and became Dia once again.

And she bid goodbye to her frightened, nervous self forever.

Well.... that is, until one day, when a certain (blushing)farmer approached her, holding a blue feather.

But everybody has their little flaws from time to time.

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Wow... I actually got this done! I was afraid I would never see this one to the finish.

The theme for this was Opposites, but I fear that I didn't do it very well at all, but at least I tried my best(I...think?)!

I actually started this story on the first day of the contest, and then got stuck, and then forgot about it for a while. I'm not very good at remembering little details about each HM game, and I hate it when I get my facts wrong.

But I did REALLY want to write this one, ever since MM. I always felt like Dia was a truly kind person under her somewhat rude demeanor, but you never really do find out, even after marriage. I mean, can't you let your guard down a bit towards your own husband!? But I digress, this story just seemed right for me, but I'm still afraid that Dia's horribly out of character.

Well, regardless, I enjoyed writing this story, and I hope it was at least somewhat enjoyable during the reading.

PS. If anybody who is reading this story also reads "Moments", then please forgive me for the drought. I'm just suffering MAJOR writer's block(in that specific area), and I should have a new chapter posted really soon. Again, sorry.


End file.
